ethical ubuntu

[Robin Sonefors]

The more I read about this spec, the more I like it.

I've been thinking of starting (well, I haven't been close  to actually
doing it, but I've been thinking of it) some kind of "boycott website".
It shouldn't tell the user "Skype is immoral", though. It should tell
the user "other users don't like Skype, because..." and then list all
the reasons other persons dislike it (preferably, reasons should be able
to be inherited: "skype is owned by ebay, that kills babies"). Also,
something similar for hardware would be cool - what kind of drivers do
the vendor do, do they release linux versions, or even bsd-versions, do
they do it in reasonable time, are the drivers open source, and so on.

The objective isn't to tell the user "this vendor sucks, but this
doesn't", it's to tell the user "this vendor does these things wich some
people dislike, but this other vendor instead do this instead, so you
got to pick". It should make it easy to make an informed option, not
tell the user what to think.

I feel you have the same idea, but different implementation. Right?

tis 2006-06-06 klockan 08:42 +0100 skrev Jack Wasey:
> Thanks for the input, everyone.
> 
> The spec https://wiki.ubuntu.com/EthicalInfo is not just about FOSS, it's about 
> ethics in the real world. Many people make consumer decisions about country of 
> origin of their food, cars, etc., and the business, social, or environmental 
> practices of companies. I want people to be able to make informed decisions on 
> matters considered to be internationally important, such as freedom of speech, 
> freedom from political imprisonment and torture. And there is a choice to be 
> made when it comes to deciding whether to install Skype or not. This is all far 
> more important than the open/closed debate.
> 
> I find it extremely distasteful that some companies abet governments in 
> punishing people for expressing themselves, and I want to know who is doing it. 
> I don't expect everyone to completely avoid Google, Microsoft, Yahoo as I do, 
> but I think people should be aware of the consequences of using their software 
> and services.
> 
> This spec can affect the average user, e.g. when their IM traffic or search 
> queries are stored and passed on to whichever government demands them (US, 
> China...). If the person is using Ubuntu in such a country, they definitely need 
> to know what is safe and what is not. Ubuntu default should be safe. Remember, 
> you can't do a web search for "censorship avoidance" in some countries.
> 
> Yes, Skype is bad for running a secret protocol, but some people find their 
> involvement in censorship more serious, and another reason to avoid the company. 
> I think we have a responsibility to inform users, not just keep packages out of 
> mulitverse. For some users, it could make the difference between a prison 
> sentence or not.
> 
> The spec is about information and choice in software and real world ethics.
> 
> Jack
> 
>